Already down thanks to a powerplay goal, the Flames were put on their heels before the game was five minutes old when Tony Amonte was given a double minor for high sticking. Brendan Shanahan neatly redirected Niklas Lidstrom's point shot to make it 2-0 and the Wings were off to the races.

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BIG SAVE:

Late in the first period, Detroit's Kirk Maltby drove to the net and neatly redirected Johan Franzen's shot on the rush. Miikka Kiprusoff, already besieged by the rubber, slid across to make a clutch stop.

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HARDEST HIT:

Dion Phaneuf lined up Dan Cleary when the Wings forward was heading down the wing and drilled him into the glass.

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UNSUNG HERO:

Everyone on the Wings pitched in and should be duly noted but Jason Williams quietly racked up a couple of points with a solid performance offensively and defensively.

Were the Flames watching the Wings and taking notes on how to run a powerplay?

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WHAT IT MEANS:

Sure it's a tough way to start the season -- four road games in three time zones -- but now the Flames need a win in Colorado to finish the trip at .500.

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NOTEWORTHY:

With his first-period assist, and second point of the game, Detroit defenceman Nicklas Lidstrom moved into sixth on the Red Wings' all-time scoring list with point No. 729 ... Chris Chelios is the oldest Red Wings player in history at 43 years, 257 days, even older than Gordie Howe. Chelios needs two more games to reach 1,400.

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COMING IN:

Calgary is in Colorado tonight. After dropping their season opener in Edmonton, the Avs beat Dallas Saturday before returning to the Mile High City for their home opener.

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HEAD-TO-HEAD:

Calgary won the last two meetings in Denver, including the 7-1 thrashing in which new Flames goalie Philippe Sauve was in net for the Avs.